The Downtown Sykesville Connection, Inc (DSC) was awarded the titles of “Coolest Small Town in America” by Budget Travel (2016) and “Best Main Street in America” by Independent We Stand amid the Covid-19 pandemic (2020), highlighting our promotion and marketing program as one of the organization’s strongest assets. A record-setting 1.5 million total votes were cast in the 2020 contest, 160,000 for Sykesville, shy of 4,800 residents. It positioned the DSC as the innovative conductor of new virtual relationships.

The DSC continued to establish its value as the builder of emotional connections between community members or the community and its downtown through the 2016 contest. From the block party announcing Sykesville’s participation to the event celebrating the win, the DSC witnessed Sykesville community pride grow. Our Main Street program has nurtured this sense of pride and belonging ever since, and we still feel it on Main Street today. It is the cornerstone of our identity and a qualitative measure of the validity of the Main Street Program.

The “Coolest and Best” titles represent the recognition of our Main Street organization as an indispensable driver of economic and community development. They have allowed the DSC to establish its brand and continue developing marketing campaigns, programs, and merchandise.

Our Main Street program's success was honored in 2023 when it was selected as a semifinalist for the prestigious Great American Main Street Award. This recognition came from an expert panel at the National Main Street Center, acknowledging our initiative as one of the top eight community and economic development programs out of more than 1,200 across the United States.